W♥M

Prime Time

Read More Amazon Then, since Amazon Prime Day/week, I’ve had two packages that were delivered to the wrong location. I believe both were delivered by the USPS… so now I have very little faith in the post office. …

Once again, it’s Amazon’s Prime Day. Today is the last day of the two-day shopping event that Amazon is promoting.

From my own personal experience, I won’t buy anything on Prime Day. Why? Because my orders will take much longer than the standard two-day shipping, and last year, Amazon lost all my packages due to the massive uptick in orders and deliveries. I would happily pay a little more knowing that I will get my order in a timely manner and to my address.

In fact, it was last year’s Prime Day lost packages that I went full Amazon Locker from that moment on. The locker is a fantastic idea and guarantees packages delivered to me. Unfortunately, large items (like Snake Mountain) has to be deliver to my house because it’s just too big to fit in a locker. The other non-locker exception is if the item is of high value (over $1,000), Fedex or UPS requires a signature.

Gaming.Amazon.Com

Anyway, as part of the Prime Day promotion, Amazon is teaming up with Epic Games to give away some great games, like Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League (a fairly new game) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (this beat-em up game).

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League came out February 2, 2024 and originally sold for $60. I never bothered to buy the game originally, so getting it free is pretty sweet.

I already own Tomb Raider (all those games) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge on other platforms, but getting it on my Epic Games for free is awesome. The TMNT game originally came out in 2022, and I love it so much that I bought the expansion Dimension Shellshock that came out in 2023.

Yours,

Weekend Gamer

Read more Weekend Gamer.

vu ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Weekend Gamer: Humble Bundle

Read More Humble Bundle Game On: Humble Bundle I already own at least five of these games (on discs and digital), but I couldn't resist paying the average price to get these games again. When I donated, they gave me a breakdown of how .... Pathfinder As I’ve previously mentioned, I pre-ordered and looked forward to playing Pathfinder: Kingmaker. The game came out on Tuesday (September 25), and by Friday (September 28) …

Read more Weekend Gamer.

Humble Bundle: Türkiye-Syria earthquake relief
humblebundle.com

Again, what a great deal, you get over $1,000 worth of games and books for $30, and best of all, 100% of the money goes directly to help the Türkiye-Syria earthquake relief effort.

If you don’t own any of these games, including Gotham Knights, Ghostrunner, and Pathfinder: Kingmaker, you definitely want to grab this Humble Bundle.

Details:

The devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria have created an urgent humanitarian crisis. Hundreds of thousands of people are in immediate need of medical supplies, food, water, and shelter, and the road to recovery will continue to be extremely challenging for the people of the region. To lend a hand how we can, we’ve joined forces with game makers & book publishers for a bundle 100% dedicated to supporting Türkiye-Syria quake relief efforts.

The Türkiye-Syria earthquake relief bundle features over 70 items worth over $1,000, including: Gotham Knights, the 2022 open-world action-RPG featuring Batgirl, Nightwing, Red Hood, and Robin; cyberpunk slasher Ghostrunner; epic RPG Pathfinder: Kingmaker Enhanced Plus Edition; sci-fi strategy hit XCOM 2; action-packed heist game PAYDAY 2; and acclaimed sim Euro Truck Simulator 2.

All 10 current digital volumes of Image Comics’ Eisner Award-winning series Saga, plus the Starfinder tabletop RPG from Paizo.

100% of the proceeds will go to Direct Relief, International Medical Corps, and Save the Children in support of their ongoing Türkiye-Syria quake relief efforts.

If games aren’t your thing, Humble Bundle has a few books and comics worth checking out.

Goosebumps Collection

Elfquest Collection

The first is Goosebumps Collection. You get 31 books by R.L. Stine for $18… plus you’ll be helping out the charity group Active Minds. I own a few Goosebumps books, on and off, but never religiously followed the series. It’s popular enough to get a couple of movies, the first one starring Jack Black.

Anyway, these books are available as ePub books and only available to U.S. residents.

The second is a great Elfquest Dark Horse Collection, this includes all the books published by Dark Horse Comics for $18. Dark Horse offered the Lone Wolf and Cub humble bundle deal that was fantastic. Those were available as PDF or CBZ files, so I’m assuming the Elfquest books are available in the same format. You can use the files on any tablet, including the iPad.

Alternatively, there’s 2000 AD bundle that featured some Judge Dredd and Slaine books. 13 books for $18.

I may end up buying the Elfquest and Goosebumps books, because they are such good deals, even though I won’t have time to read them… I have about 15 days to think about it. We’ll see.

Yours,

Weekend Gamer

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Free Games: Control, Hellpoint, and Batman TellTale

Read More E3 It’s E3 week (June 12th-June 15th). The Electronic Entertainment Expo took a break last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it’s back… although it’s mostly live-streams with some small in-person coverage …

As previously mentioned, it’s E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) week… so a lot of gaming websites are taking advantage of the event and giving away lots of free games.



>>>
CONTROL (2019)
epicgames.com

I’ve heard a lot about Control, from Remedy Entertainment/505 Games. The game got a lot of positive reviews from critics, and to be honest, I’ve always wanted to check it out. Unfortunately, I just didn’t have the time, and thought maybe I would just wait for a sale.

When the game was re-released in 2021 for the PS5 and Xbox Series X, it was met with some criticisms, because it was sold as full price – and fans who already own the original base game didn’t want to pay for it again.

Based on the negative reactions from the Control fans, it did sour my interest in the game and I did put a pause on buying it.

I guess all that waiting was worth it, as currently, the game is free on the Epic Game store. I know a lot of people hate on Epic, saying they’re a bully, saying that they’re own and controlled by China, saying their software sucks (it does!)… but still, despite the jank, at least this company is giving away free games. The rich/powerful Steam won’t (and has never) done anything like this.

Like all the free games, I just log in to claim the game… and when I have time, I’ll install and play it. So if you’re not sure you want the game… why not just claim it now and think about it later.



HELLPOINT
gog.com

I wasn’t expecting it, but my favorite game retailer, GOG (Good Old Games), was giving out Hellpoint for free. To be perfectly honest, I have never heard of this action role-playing game before. It was developed by Cradle Games and published by tinyBuild.

It looks interesting enough, I’m practically fond of RPG, so when I get the time this weekend, I’ll definitely be looking forward to checking out this game.

Perhaps if I like it enough, I might try and get it for the Nintendo Switch.



BATMAN: THE TELLTALE SERIES
twitch.tv

Like many video game fans, I have dabbled in the TellTale games. They basically make visual novels… set to these “choices”. I’ve often felt that none of the choices you make actually affect the game. I could be wrong, but that’s the impression I get.

The two games I’ve tried out is The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones, both based on popular television shows. After playing the games, I’ve decided that these type of games were just not for me. I find that the graphics are bad and the game engine (called Telltale Tool) is really dated/doesn’t really run that well.

After years of licenses… TellTale filed for bankruptcy in 2018, and its assets were sold to LCG Entertainment… who is still selling these aging games.

The Batman: The TellTale Series is currently free on Twitch, but only if you have Amazon Prime. Since I have Prime, it was an easy free claim for me.

The bad news is that you’ll have to download the Twitch Desktop App to be able to download the Batman game.

vu([email protected]) ♥weheartmusic.com♥facebook.com♥twitter.com/weheartmusic

Justice League: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Track Listing    -- Disc 1 -- Everybody Knows by Sigrid The Justice League Theme - Logos Hero's Theme Batman on the Roof Enter Cyborg Wonder Woman Rescue Hippolyta's Arrow The Story of Steppenwolf The Amazon Mother Box Cyborg Meets Diana Aquaman in Atlantis Then There Were Three The Tunnel Fight The World Needs Superman Spark of The Flash Friends and Foes Justice League United Home Bruce and Diana The Final Battle A New Hope Anti - Hero's Theme Come Together by Gary Clark Jr. and Junkie XL Icky Thump by The White Stripes -- Disc: 2 -- The Tunnel Fight (Full Length Bonus Track) The Final Battle (Full Length Bonus Track) Mother Russia (Bonus Track) Read More Comic Books I really hate the title Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I can understand it, it tells us that Batman will be fighting Superman... and somehow it involves the Justice …

It’s “Justice League Day” today (November 18, 2017), and now that the film is out at all major theaters, I hope you all got a chance to see Justice League. We saw it, and it’s pretty straightforward… but a lot of fun.

If you saw the film and love it, you buy the Justice League: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack on Digital now via WaterTower Music. The soundtrack was officially released on November 10th, and you can more about it with the press release. For physical lovers, you’ll have to wait until December 8th for the two-CD version, and February 9, 2018 for the double vinyl edition.

What’s important to note about this soundtrack is that it features Oingo Boingo’s Danny Elfman returning to scoring a DC Super Hero film since his exit with Batman Returns in 1992. His scores is often big and sweeping, like his Batman works… but it also had to work with Hans Zimmer’s Wonder Woman Theme and John Williams’ Superman Theme (spoiler alert if you didn’t know Superman was going to make it in the film…) Elfman basically incorporated and re-interpreted those previous themes, stating “I’m using the same thematic material that I used back then. It never actually went away. We’ve got these iconic bits from our past and that’s part of us, that’s part of our heritage. It just was great fun.”

The non-Elfman songs were Gary Clark Jr. and Junkie XL’s version of The Beatles’ ‘Come Together’, The White Stripes’ ‘Icky Thump’ and Norwegian pop singer/ songwriter Sigrid’s cover of Leonard Cohen’s ‘Everybody Knows.’ The latter is such a great way to honor the great, late Cohen’s wonderful song. If you’ve never heard ‘Everybody Knows’, check out Pump Up the Volume (1990).

If this is any indication of what’s to come, I’m looking forward to Elfman to score other DC Films, hopefully Justice League 2.

Justice League is out now in 3D and 2D at theaters across America.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Batman: The Killing Joke

Podcast Killing Joke Vu and John just saw the special screening of Batman: The Killing Joke ... Killing Joke About the Movie What does it take for a person to snap? How much despair for a mind to fracture? These are the twisted questions that The Joker has set out to answer, to show Gotham that even an ordinary man like Commissioner Gordon is only one bad day away from sheer insanity. Based on the acclaimed DC Comics graphic novel, witness a journey into the dark psyche of the Clown Prince of Crime. Follow his humble beginnings as a struggling comic to his fateful encounter with the Dark Knight that changed everything. Fueled by the return of Kevin Conroy as Batman and Mark Hamill as The Joker, witness the birth of a super villain, the fortitude of a hero and the punch line that will leave you speechless. Read More Batman Friday was the first full day of Wizard World Chicago Comic Con, held at the Donald J. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL, just outside Chicago, and there were plenty of onsite activities to keep busy. …

Batman: The Killing Joke is one of the best Joker vs Batman story ever written. The book was created by writer Alan Moore and beautifully drawn by Brian Bolland. When Warner Bros. Animation decided to adapt this sacred story to the animated screen, we knew this animation would be dark and serious. In fact, the film is rated “R”, the first WB Animation to get this restricted rating. Despite the limited theatrical release and rating restriction, the film still did pretty well, grossing $3.8 million.

Just a little backstory on how Batman: The Killing Joke started, according to Bolland, from The Art of Brian Bolland (Image Comics) and Cover Story: The DC Comics Art of Brian Bolland (DC Comics), it was him that brought the project to light. In 1986, Bolland wanted to do something more substantial than just his regular cover gigs so he called up (then) Vice President Dick Giordano and asked him for a Batman project. Bolland requested Alan Moore as writer.... and somehow DC Comics managed to get Moore on board.

To work on Bolland’s art strengths, they decided to focus it on the Joker (that's because Bolland said that his Judge Death, from Judge Dredd, was mostly a foreshadowing of the Joker) with Batman serving as “less defined background character”.

The story is quite simple: the Joker maimed Barbara Gordon (Batgirl), strips her naked and photographed her in an effort to drive Commissioner James Gordon insane. In typical Moore style, the story also parallels, what we know today as the definitive Joker origin story. There are different variations, but as the Joker puts it, “If I'm going to have a past, I prefer it to be multiple choice!”, but in this version, the story paints him in a sympathetic light.

Two years later (1998), Bolland was still drawing the comics and he realized that after he's blown through some deadlines, that there was absolutely no way he could color the graphic novel himself. Instead, they hired John Higgins to do the colors.

Of course, Bolland, hated the colors. Bolland was more than happy to go back and re-color his work, 20 years later when DC went back to printing the special 20th Anniversary Edition.

With the source material so beloved, WB was bound to disappoint its fan. First of all, the animated artwork seems pretty generic, cartoony, rather than the detailed line work that Bolland is famously known for.

The second disappointment came in a brand new storyline introduced to animated The Killing Joke. Understandably, the film makers needed to give a backstory and motivation to Batgirl’s character and gave her a reason to give up her cape... But ultimately the Batgirl story had little, if anything, to do with The Killing Joke and was really totally unnecessary.

It wasn’t so much the extra Batgirl story that had fans upset, it was the fact that they got her character wrong. And spoiler alert, but the way they saw it was that Batman was more of a father figure/mentor than how it was portrayed in the first half of the story.

When the actual comic adaption began, it did a fairly good job. For the first time, we got to see the pages of the comics come to life, although I would have loved to see some of the dialog overlaps some scenes (as how I originally imagined it in my head when I read the graphic novel).

It was also good to get the old gang from Batman: The Animated Series back together again: Bruce Timm (producer), Kevin Conroy (Batman) and Mark Hamill (the Joker).

Batman: The Killing Joke Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Part of brought the story to life was hearing the great Batman: The Killing Joke Original Motion Picture Soundtrack. The orchestral score by Lolita Ritmanis, Kristopher Carter & Michael McCuistion, was released about a week before the film hit theaters. Typically with these soundtrack, they’re instrumental and designed to be heard as background music, but what made Batman: The Killing Joke soundtrack special is that it featured Mark Hamill (as the Joker) singing “I Go Looney.”

“I Go Looney” sounded like an odd Broadway musical, with a good beat and melody, a stark opposite of the dark story. According to the special features on the Bluray disc, that was exactly what the music writers were going for. For that, the song really stood out.

Lolita Ritmanis and a full orchestra

There was a lot of care that went into designing the soundtrack, as Carter mentioned, “Bruce [Timm] and Sam [Liu, director] are deeply sensitive to the effect of music on the scenes. During our meetings, we would discuss what was happening not only onscreen, but also what was NOT onscreen that the music can support. Communicating what the characters are thinking and feeling is one of the most powerful uses of music in film, and it was a joy to collaborate with film makers that want to find just the right tone to help tell the story.”

If you love the original graphic novel, Batman: The Killing Joke Blu-Ray and Original Motion Picture Soundtrack are great companion pieces and should belong in your collection.

Batman: The Killing Joke is out now on Blu-Ray and DVD. Batman: The Killing Joke Soundtrack is available on CD and digital WaterTower Music and La-La Land Records (lalalandrecords.com).

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

W♥M258: Batman: The Killing Joke

W♥M258: Batman... (19 mins) Read More Batman Friday was the first full day of Wizard World Chicago Comic Con, held at the Donald J. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL, just outside Chicago, and there were plenty of onsite activities to keep busy. …

Vu and John just saw the special screening of Batman: The Killing Joke, courtesy of Fathom Events, at the ICON Showplace in St Louis Park. The original Fathom listing (July 25) was so popular (with terrific advance ticket sales), that they added an additional “encore” screening for July 26. With only 1,325 theaters (and with even less showing for the encore presentations), the film still grossed over $3.8 million. Amount does not include digital sales or rentals, which went on sale the day after the Monday showing.

Just briefly:

Fathom Events and what they do.

Comparing the film to Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s original Batman: The Killing Joke (DC Comics).

The film adds a whole Batgirl backstory... either to pad out the time or justify some motivations later in the film.

Two special featurettes were shown before and after the main feature. Beginning with a new interview with Joker’s voice actor Mark Hammill (Star Wars) and ending with a music feature, featuring composers Kristopher Carter, Michael McCuistion, and Lolita Ritmanis.

Song of the Show: Mark Hammill’s “I Go Looney”.

BONUS:

Dr Strange trailer.

Teen Titans: The Judas Contract to be adapted as an animated feature.

Wonder Woman trailer.

Suicide Squad

Harley Quinn first appeared in Batman: The Animated Series and made her way to comic books.

Batman: The Killing Joke will be out on Blu-Ray and DVD on August 2, 2016. Batman: The Killing Joke Soundtrack is available now via WaterTower Music and La-La Land Records (lalalandrecords.com); we are working on a review for the soundtrack.

--
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Archive of this show at archive.org. More information on podomatic.com. Recording of this podcast was made possible by Skype, CallGraph, and Audacity.

W♥M257: Garbage (09 July 2016) Vu, Lee W♥M256: PB&J (25 June 2016) Vu, John W♥M255: Spring 2016 Playlist (15 May 2016) Vu, John W♥M254: The Struts (07 May 2016) Vu, John W♥M253: Comic May-hem (04 May 2016) Vu, John W♥M252: Låpsley (01 May 2016) Vu, John

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Batman v Superman: Threat or Menace?

Read More Batman v Superman I really hate the title Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I can understand it, it tells us that Batman will be fighting Superman... and somehow it involves the Justice League. … Wizard World Minneapolis It is pretty much all-Wizard World all weekend! W♥M will be bringing you extensive coverage of the three-day event - plus the traditional kick-off free event at the Mall of America on Thursday. …

Wizard World Minneapolis, the annual convention gathering of comics, and pop culture fun ended on Sunday at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

One of the panels we attended was ‘Batman v Superman: Threat or Menace?’ with Superman’s Dan Jurgens and Spider-Man’s Danny Fingeroth.

Both Jurgens and Fingeroth did not love, but they also did not hate the film. Fingeroth compared the film with the recent Captain America: Civil War, saying that he simply answered ‘Yes’ he loved the Cap film, but with BvS, he would say ‘Yes.. but.’

I didn’t expect either one to trash the film, but Jurgens would later confessed to me that he was surprised to see the backlash to BvS, stating that he only saw massive, positive responses at two film premieres.

When the Q&A was opened, some fans expressed that they felt the film was too ‘dark’ and they had problem bringing their children to ‘enjoy’ the film with the family. They bring up a good point, for a popcorn summer blockbuster film, BvS was not.

I’ve made it publically clear, that while I was a fan of Zack Snyder’s adaptions of Watchmen and 300 ... I really hated his Man of Steel or Sucker Punch films. After watching Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, I’m convinced that Snyder really need a good editor (that can say no to him).

I’ll list what didn’t work for me:

Too dark and gritty for a mainstream superhero film. Sure, this could work as an Elseworld film, but not as a flagship DC Comics film.

Misunderstanding of both Superman and Batman. Get the characters right, Superman doesn’t kill and Batman doesn’t brand people or use guns to kill people. I personally didn’t mind the re-imagined Lex Luthor though.

The trailer showed you the entire film, so Wonder Woman or Doomsday appearing in the film did not surprised anyone. The team that put together that trailer should be fired.

Too much, too ambitious, lost its focus. The Lois Lane thing went on too long, why even have her storyline in the film? Introducing the Justice League and Darkseid/Apocalypse in the film were mistakes. They should just concentrate on Superman and Batman, as the title suggested.

While I still believe Suicide Squad can redeem DC Comics/Warner Brothers, but I have little hope for the rest of the upcoming DC films, including Justice League Part One and Justice League Part Two.

The executives at Warner Bros have heard the outcry and complaints about BvS and the Hollywood Reporter said that “Jon Berg and Geoff Johns will co-run the newly created DC Films in an attempt to course-correct Warners' comic book movies...” and also Seth Grahame-Smith was let go on The Flash film.

Dan Jurgens v Danny Fingeroth at Wizard World Minneapolis (08 May 2016)

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

DC Comics to Films (and TV) in 2016

Read More Superman I finally got around to watching Jon Schnepp's The Death of "Superman Lives": What Happened? documentary on what happened to the film "Superman Lives". The doomed film would have been directed by Tim Burton … Batman Friday was the first full day of Wizard World Chicago Comic Con, held at the Donald J. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL, just outside Chicago, and there were plenty of onsite activities to keep busy. … Justice League Interested in getting your hands on the Justice League: Gods & Monsters Soundtrack? The CD will be out August 11, 2015, and is limited to only 1,000 units. It is exclusively available only at La-La Land Records. …

As a former hardcore comic book collector (currently I am still buying some random flimsies and will still buy hardcovers), I am pretty excited about all these comic book super heroes coming to the silver screen and television.

In the past few years, Marvel Comics has been enjoying its success with Avengers, Captain America, Iron Man, Ant-Man, Guardian of the Galaxy, Thor, Hulk, Fantastic Four, Ghost Rider, Daredevil (TV), Jessica Jones (TV). DC Comics, on the other hand, had nothing but failures, including The Losers, Jonah Hex, Green Lantern, The Dark Knight Rises (the worst of the Nolan films), and the terrible Man of Steel film.

DC's last film was the space-invader Superman film in 2013, and after a three year break, DC is finally getting their act together with some exciting announcements: Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad (with Wonder Woman and Aquaman sometime in 2017).

I'm going to break down these upcoming 2016 titles.

BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE
batmanvsuperman.dccomics.com

I really hate the title Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I can understand it, it tells us that Batman will be fighting Superman... and somehow it involves the Justice League. Based on the first trailer of the film, like so many other fans, I have come up with the storyline: Lex Luther introduced Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne. They later duke it out. Then they have to team up to fight Doomsday... but is saved by Wonder Woman. I hope there's more to it than that... and since it's directed by Zack Snyder, I'm sure it'll look great.

We already know that Snyder is a big Frank Miller fan, having directed 300, so I'm assuming Snyder will also be paying homage to Miller's work from his The Dark Night Returns 1986 work (featuring an aging Batman fighting Superman). The Dark Night Returns, along with Miller's Batman: Year One, is possibly the most influential Batman story. With some other titles, including Alan Moore's Watchmen (which Snyder also adapted and directed), The Dark Knight help launched the so-called "grim and gritty" era that followed it.

I just hope that these upcoming films won't be so 'dark and gritty', but all evidence (including Man of Steel) kind of point us in that direction.

Read More Comic Books FallCon 2013 just took place on Saturday, October 5th. The turnout to this 25-year-old comic book convention was impressive, despite that FallCon for this year, was the smaller of the two cons (its sibling SpringCon …

SUICIDE SQUAD
suicidesquad.com

I am super-excited for this upcoming Suicide Squad film. Everyone is talking about how great the new Joker looks, but the obvious standout is clearly Harley Quinn, who is the comedy relief of the picture.

If you didn't know or follow the comic book, the current version of the group first appeared is at the end of John Ostrander and John Byrne's Legends cross-over limited series that introduced the (then) new Justice League in 1987. I remember attending a comic book convention and we asked why a vendor was selling Legends #7 for $75 and he told us it was because of Suicide Squad. We couldn't believe it.

Since newer fans may not know who is actually in Suicide Squad, here is a list of characters:

Amanda Waller: Portrayed in the comic book as an overweight and very rude black woman. I didn't follow Checkmate! that closely, but I believe she's also in charge of that division of the government.

Rick Flag: A military officer, team leader of "Task Force X" (aka Suicide Squad). Apparently Tom Hardy was originally cast for this role.

Katana: She's in this film as part of Flag's crew, she's a hero from her days with Batman and the Outsiders.

Deadshot: A Batman villain and assassin, known for his expert marksman. I have often confused him with Deathstroke and Deadpool.

Captain Boomerang: An Australian villain from The Flash comics. He kills people with deadly boomerangs... not really sure why he's all that deadly.

El Diablo: I don't keep up with the current DC's 52, but this villain has pyrotechnic abilities.

Killer Croc: A Batman villain, this half-man, half-crocodile is the strongman of the group.

Harley Quinn: One of the few characters that did not come from comic books. Her origin is from Batman: The Animated Series. She's come a long way from being the Joker's sidekick to a true fan favorite.

Enchantress: A very different look on the character from her comic book appearance (green hat, etc). Based on the trailer, it seems she can control men.

The Joker: He is actually not in the Suicide Squad team, but the trailers seems to show that he has a big role in the film. I'm assuming he's the villain, or at least has a part in the big threat of the film.

Read More Arrow Arrow : Although I watched the first few seasons (mostly for Deathstroke, the Terminator), I have given up on the show for its mediocre melodrama. …

DC'S LEGENDS OF TOMORROW
cwtv.com

With TNT recently decided to pass on Teen Titans the TV show, we're left with only CBS' Supergirl (which debut in November 2015) and this 2016 show called Legends of Tomorrow.

I just saw the Legends pilot episode, and it is pretty good... although I suspect I will eventually stop watching the show, as I have dropped Arrow and The Flash. Legends suffers from all The CW programming: melodramatic acting, "teenish" editing, and boring storyline.

There are big stars in this series, including Prison Breakers Dominic Purcell (Heat Wave) with Wentworth Miller (Captain Cold), and Superman returner Brandon Routh (Atom). The large cast of characters and villains might be problem for new fans, as you need a "who's who" guide to tell you what is going on. Hopefully, with so many characters, the writers won't have a problem writing a compelling story spotlighting and building up these characters.

Who's Who:

Rip Hunter: A time traveler, from Jack Kirby's Challengers of the Unknown. Later in the 90s, he got his own series called Time Masters, however the 1991 series Challengers of the Unknown left out Hunter.

Firestorm: I'm familiar with the original Nuclear Man, featuring a white "jock" and a professor. The new Firestorm swap out the white jock for a black one, but the concept is still the same: youth stupidity and seasoned smarts of a learned professor. Personally speaking, I think Firestorm is visually the coolest superhero.

Atom: Like Marvel's Ant Man, the Atom's new origin has a similar story: he's the inventor of a power-suit capable of shrinking down to the size of an atom.

White Canary: Basically the same character as Black Canary (who often teamed up with Green Arrow). Based on the explanation in the pilot, she was paying tribute to Black Canary (obviously I didn't keep up with the Arrow series).

Hawkman / Hawkgirl: Ask anyone who follow the Hawkman/Hawkgirl timeline, it is a mess. A few years ago, Geoff Johns tried to unify their origin by explaining that they reincarnations of ancient Egypt (which I feel still doesn't explain the Hawkmen of Planet Thanagar). Still this series follow the current Hawkman reincarnation story.

Heat Wave / Captain Cold: The two villains in this heroes-group, both are Flash villains. No one (including the fans) knows why they are part of the group... only perhaps I have jokingly said that they needed a job, and this is a good fit for them.

Vandal Savage: The immortal is the villain of the series. Personally speaking, I don't really understand why he is such a threat. Outside of being immortal, he doesn't really have any other super powers. Even his nemesis (?) Resurrection Man is able to come back to life with the powers that killed him. Savage, on the other hand, is just amassing power and weapons throughout history. I really don't think Savage is all that scary.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

W♥M245: We Can Be Heroes

W♥M245: We Can Be Heroes (66 mins) Read More Star Wars BONUS LEVEL QUESTION: Favorite Sci-Fi movie? Most definitely Star Wars, I was raised on it. That's my childhood, therefore it is dear to me. … Batman Friday was the first full day of Wizard World Chicago Comic Con, held at the Donald J. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL, just outside Chicago, and there were plenty of onsite activities to keep busy. … David Bowie There is no one closely associated with the Holiday Christmas spirit than Bing Crosby.... who could forget his rendition of "White Christmas" or his duet with the The Thin White Duke David Bowie? …

Bonus Episode: Vu and John talks comics and other things.

Films:

It's all about that Star Wars! Star Wars: The Force Awakens at $900 mil worldwide and counting. Disney saying when all is said and done (DVD sales, etc), revenue from the film more than pays for their Lucasfilm purchase.

Der Fan (aka "Trance") 1982 film about a disturbing teenage fan (Simone), obsessed with popstar/actor "R". Cult-classic and great soundtrack by Rheingold (sounds like 80s new wave synth band). Star of the film is Desiree Nosbusch when she was only 17 years old in this picture.

UPDATE: Only found out after the podcast that the reason why this film is relatively rare is because Nosbusch tried to prevent the film from being released. The Blu-Ray/DVD Combo was only available in America on March 2015 via Mondo Macabro. You can purchase a copy at Amazon, it's the best deal in town ($18).

The Big Short is a 2015 American biographical comedy-drama film directed and co-written by Adam McKay, starring Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, and Brad Pitt.

Leaked Screeners: One pirate group promising as many as 40 to release online, including Hateful Eight, Joy, and James Bond: Spectre. How much does it impact box office?

Comic Book Television:

Daredevil

Jessica Jones

Comic Book Movies:

Deadpool

Captain America: Civil War

Suicide Squad

Batman v Superman

Song of the Show:

"Heroes" by David Bowie

BONUS: The Walking Dead: Season 6 (part one), The Expanse.

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Archive of this show at archive.org. More information on podomatic.com. Recording of this podcast was made possible by Skype, CallGraph, and Audacity.

W♥M244: 2015 (03 January 2016) Vu, John W♥M243: Reader Meet Author (21 December 2015) Vu, Emily W♥M242: Love Me (11 December 2015) Vu, John W♥M241: Hello (01 December 2015) Vu, John, Langen W♥M240: Ben Sollee and Mother Falcon (31 October 2015) Vu, John W♥M239: June is the new Rocktober (8 July 2015) Vu, John

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Wizard World Chicago Comic Con - Friday show re-cap (22 Aug 2014)

Photo Gallery Cosplay: Ghouls Cosplay: Daft Punk Cosplay: Red Rose Cosplay: Halo Cosplay: Venom, Moon Knight, & Spawn Cosplay: Thor, Hellboy, & Loki Chicago crowd J August Richard Read More Wizard World Comic book, movie, sci-fi, horror, and pop culture fans will again converge in the Midwest as next weekend’s Wizard World Chicago Comic Con takes over the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in suburban Rosemont, IL. …

Friday was the first full day of Wizard World Chicago Comic Con, held at the Donald J. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL, just outside Chicago, and there were plenty of onsite activities to keep busy.

Instead of last year’s two-level set-up, the right and left halves of the main floor had the retailing area, with upstairs and downstairs ballrooms being the site for Panels, Screenings, and Q+A sessions, as previous.  Given that amount of space, it seemed like the largest overall Wizard World convention at the venue, to date.

Comic book-related vendors mostly were placed on one side of the exhibit space, while other pop culture vendors (swords, cosplay accessories, autographs, licensed goods, etc) were on the other side.

Panels of the day included:

• Jason David Frank meet and greet (the original Green/White Power Ranger)
• 1939: Batman’s Beginnings
• Women in Geek Culture
• One-on-One with James Marsters (Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel)
• One-on-one with J. August Riichards (Deathlok in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D TV series)

The Marsters panel included many on-the-set stories from the shows he’s been a part of, as well as anecdotes and answering the fans’ need-to-know questions.

Richards’ panel was full of energy and insightful as well.  He entered the stage holding a pitcher of ice water, teasing the crowd that he would do the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge in front of them, but then deferred.  Richards answered fan and moderator questions, including his love of comics growing up, excitement at playing the Deathlok character on TV, and being out of work as an actor for 18 months, until that role came along.

Several in the audience remembered his role on Angel as vampire hunter Charles Gunn, and convinced Richards to tweet Wizard to request an unscheduled Angel panel, to include the other cast members that were also at Wizard World Chicago.

Additionally on the show floor, speed dating sessions, a short film festival, and horror film festival curated by Bruce Campbell (Evil Dead, Army of Darkness, who is on hand as well) were ongoing.

Comic book creators in attendance included Marvel’s Stan Lee, Neal Adams (“Batman,” “Green Lantern”), Leinil Yu (“Hulk,” “Wolverine”), Salvador Larroca (“Avengers vs. X-Men,” “Captain America”), , Mike Zeck (“Spider-Man,” “Punisher”), Marv Wolfman (“DCU Online,” “Crisis on Infinite Earths”) and others, including a handful of up-and-coming Spanish-based artists, flown in to attend for the weekend.

Drummer Peter Criss from Kiss was on hand to sign autographs and meet the fans (though all the presale tickets to do so, were sold out), but unfortunately, his panel/Q+A was cancelled, as was one with Star Trek’s Jonathan Frakes, though other ST:TNG panels did take place.

Longest signing line in the Media Area that we witnessed on Friday, was for Kevin Conroy, the voice of Batman in the animated series, for the last 23 years.

Stay tuned for Saturday coverage and show re-cap!

James Marsters at Wizard World Chicago Comic Con (22 Aug 2014)

john ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com